Roller bearings are rolling bearings with rollers as the rolling elements. These rolling bearings have an inner and an outer race, with rolling elements arranged one after the other along the periphery, about an axis of rotation, between said races. The races are optionally designed on bearing rings or on the surface of the stationary component and the component mounted thereon. Cylindrical rollers or needles can be used as the rolling elements for the roller bearing, and can be designed with a slightly convex outer surface instead of an external cylindrical shape. The end faces are preferably flat, or alternatively have a convex and/or concave curvature. Needles are roller-like rolling elements wherein the ratio of the length thereof to the nominal diameter of the outer surface is greater than or equal to 2. The rolling elements are preferably inserted into a cage which guides the rolling elements along the periphery.
As a result of manufacturing tolerances and in consideration of ease of assembly, radial bearings typically have radial play. The play is introduced into the bearings in an annular gap between the rolling elements and/or the rollers and the races which are functionally assigned to the same. The radial spacing between the races positioned opposite each other is the sum of the diameter of the rollers and the radial play. The rollers can move radially inside this range of play, between the races, which can lead to a disadvantageous noise development. In addition, disadvantages may arise in bearing configurations of rolling bearings having radial bearings, for example, where the converter neck of a torque converter is mounted with an offset of the converter neck with respect to the component functionally assigned to the same, which leads to a radial deflection and an associated uneven load on the bearing configuration and/or the rolling bearing. This is associated with a disadvantageous noise development.
DE 41 34 369 A1 shows a motor vehicle transmission having a hydrodynamic torque converter, wherein an input gear shaft is connected in a non-rotatable manner to the turbine of the torque converter. An extension of the pump wheel of the torque converter with a cylindrical design forms the converter neck. The pump can be connected to a primary pump if necessary, wherein the transmission can be supplied with pressure medium, and the torque converter with oil, via said primary pump. The pump is rotatably mounted on a bearing via the converter neck, by means of a rolling bearing designed as a roller bearing. Due to offset or tilting of the axis of rotation in the arrangement, undesirable, and particularly uneven loads on the bearing configurations and/or the rolling bearings may occur, with an associated disadvantageous noise development.
A rolling bearing designed as a roller bearing is known from FR 27 89458 A1, for the purpose of mounting a steering column. As a way of making it possible to compensate play in the assembled bearing configuration, the roller bearing has an outer bearing ring which is bounded peripherally on both sides by end segments which are connected locally to a central, peripheral segment via mounting links. The segment which forms an inner race for the rolling elements is guided on the opposite side on the shaft and/or the steering column. In addition, the central, peripheral segment has a curved rolling element race which narrows in each of the mounting link positions, for the purpose of influencing the play in the bearing configuration, thereby elastically pretensioning the assembled rolling elements of the roller bearing.
The problem addressed by the example embodiments described herein is that of providing a noise-optimized roller bearing having no peripheral variation in rigidity, and with reduced bearing play.